Luomala & Salminen

Luomala & Salminen is a duo of two young highly talented instrumentalists from Finland. Guitar player and singer Anssi Salminen (b.1985) and accordion player Markus Luomala (b. 1984) have played together since 2007. As educated musicians (both study in Sibelius Academy in Helsinki) they master blues, jazz, popular music and other styles, but their roots are still strongly in folk music tradition of their home town Kaustinen.
In Finland the duo gained attention by winning the national Konsta Jylhä Competition in 2010. In the beginning of 2011 Luomala & Salminen was nominated as Kaustinen Folk Music Festival´s “Band of the year”. Famous for their intensive performances, the duo has played dozens of gigs in Finland. Outside Finland Luomala & Salminen has performed in USA and Canada.
Luomala & Salminen´s first album “Konsta lives” concists of folk music tunes by traditional Kaustinen-fiddler and composer Konsta Jylhä and other Finnish “schlager” songs which the group has arranged to make something completely new. The album is produced by an announced folk musician and composer Ville Kangas. The tunes contain serene musical emotions as well as wild, almost shamanistic rhytmic revelry. The instrumental virtuosity combined with musical responsiveness is charasteristic to Luomala & Salminen.
"Konsta Lives" is a studio-live recording. There are neither effects nor overdubbings. Just two musicians and an urge to make music.